Dr Simon Atkins on clostridium difficile
'Clostridium difficile loves antibiotics. It's a bacterium that lives harmlessly in the gut of around three per cent of us, but it spreads itself about when hospital patients treated with broad-spectrum antibiotics suffer collateral damage to their bacteria, ie the antibiotics kill off normal bacteria, not just the ones they're aimed at. And while some get away unscathed, it will inflict life-threatening bowel inflammation on others. It's a clever beast, whose spores can be transmitted via toilet seats and bedpans. It can be beaten only if our dirty hospitals become more clinical, and if people stopped insisting on antibiotics for every little sniffle.'
Dr Simon Atkins, Bristol
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jo doran, 8 months [Offensive? Unsuitable? Report this comment.]
my partners mother has recently had a lot of courses of anti-biotics to treat chest infections and had a short stay in hospital aswell and then a few days ago she had to be admitted again due to bad sickness and diahorrea,she has contracted c diff and is currently under-going treatment in hospital for this,my problem is i am 8 and a half months pregnant and have been in contact with her,should i do anything about it ? Is it ok for my partner to carry on having any contact with her aswell or should he also stay away from her until the infection has gone ? Thanks,i am very concerned about this as i don't want any risk of infection,Joanne Doran